Important Things to Know When Choosing Your Child’s First Guitar

So, your kid wakes up one morning eager to learn to play the guitar. Isn’t that awesome? You may have the next Jimi Hendrix on your hands. So, what do you do? Surely you need to act fast before their interest moves on to a different thing. But you may be wondering, isn’t your child too young to learn an instrument?

Don’t worry, though. As long as your child has the motor skills to hold a pencil, he/she can easily use a guitar pick as well. Or in other words, any child age 3+ can learn the guitar with the right help. But if you want to make it easier for your kid to acquire the right skills for playing this awesome instrument, here are some things to know when choosing his/her first guitar.

Pick the Right Size

First of all, you can’t just hand your kid a regular guitar and expect he/she will grow into it. A standard-sized guitar is just too heavy and too big for a young child to hold. With that being said, you shouldn’t buy a guitar from a toy store either, just because it looks small enough. These guitars are cheap, poorly made, don’t produce the right sound and are far from the real thing. What you should consider though is a mini acoustic guitar designed specifically for children to hold with ease. Or in other words, pick a mini model that’s a scaled-down version of the real thing, made from the same materials and with genuine guitar strings. As acoustic guitars are hollow and thus much lighter than electric ones, it makes them the perfect choice for kids.

Fewer Strings, Means More Fun

The biggest challenge when it comes to learning the guitar, regardless if you’re a child or an adult, is mastering the number of strings. When you have to deal with six strings it’s a lot harder to remember which finger goes where. As a result, children can become easily frustrated and experience resentment towards the process of learning. But if there are fewer strings in the way, it can be much easier to learn and remember the most basic chords which are the foundation of guitar playing. That’s why it’s recommended to start with a mini acoustic guitar that has only 3 strings. Although there’s a reduced number of strings, 3-string children’s guitars look, feel, and sound exactly like the real thing. The simplified design can help eliminate stress and anxiety, while the guitar sound creates a genuine and fun experience that motivates young learners to continue improving.